Like Old Times
by Coconut1214
Summary: A tragedy makes Neal think about the past he ran from and brings him closer to the one that he could never leave behind.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: From what they showed us, Neal met Alex after he was pursuing Kate. But I always thought that Neal and Alex's relationship had to be more than a one night stand and couple of hook ups. Their relationship seemed much deeper than that. So in my mind Neal and Alex go a lot further back.

Summary: A tragedy makes Neal talk about the past he ran from and brings him closer to the one that he could never leave behind.

* * *

**Like Old Times**

* * *

Ch 1.

Peter Burke exited the elevator and balanced his coffee against his chest to open the door. He walked into his office and saw a thin envelope on his desk.

"That came for you this morning" Diana said joining him in his office. "It's from the FBI Office in St. Louis"

"St. Louis" Peter repeated and walked over to his desk, sat down and opened it. Inside it was a letter and a photo. He was going to read the letter but was distracted by the picture. It was a black and white photo that was torn, crinkled and slightly singed around the edges. But the smiling face staring at him from the photo was what was giving him pause. It was Neal, a teenage Neal leaning against a wall with a girl standing behind him.

According to his search Neal Caffrey didn't exist until he was eighteen. And now he was looking at picture of a sixteen or maybe seventeen year old Neal.

He handed Diana the photo, picked up the letter and read it. "I was looking for information on Neal and I put a note in the database for anyone that finds anything. They did, the facial recognition pinged so they sent it over." He told her as he read the letter.

Diana studied the photo, it was interesting to see Neal as a teenager and he was just handsome as ever. It wasn't surprising to see a girl on his arm however the girl looked familiar as well. She shook her head and smiled.

"What?" Peter asked noticing her reaction.

Diana flipped the photo around to show him. "That girl, that's Alex"

Peter's eyes narrowed as he looked at the picture. Diana walked over and handed it to him so he could get a closer look. The girl was behind him so all of her face wasn't visible. He put the picture down and typed on his keyboard and pulled up a picture of Alex. It was her mug shot from the one and only time she was arrested. He held the photo next to the screen. The facial structure was the same. He rubbed his hand over his face, it was Alex.

"He's known Alex since they were teenagers?" Diana asked him. "When did he tell you he met her?"

"When he worked with Adler" Peter replied still staring down at the picture of Neal and Alex as teenagers. He didn't hate Alex, she just kept popping up in Neal's life. He should've known that he didn't get the whole story. Neal kept his past a secret and anyone that was a part of that was kept a secret as well.

Neal walked into the office; he smiled and winked at Susan inhaling a whiff of her lavender perfume as he made his way to the conference room. His smiled dropped when he walked in and they all stopped talking and stared at him. "What?" he asked looking down at his suit, thinking that maybe his tie wasn't straight. His suit was perfect as usual.

"Something interesting came across my desk today" Peter told him.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I can't tell with the staring"

Peter slid the facedown photo across the table to him. Neal picked it up, his eyes widened but otherwise his face remained the stoic. He was good at hiding his reactions, even though he wasn't expecting this. "Where did you get this?" he asked looking directly at Peter.

"Is that Alex in the photo?" Peter asked.

Neal was back to staring at the picture, there wasn't supposed to be any left. They made sure they destroyed them all before they left. He closed his eyes then looked back at them.

"You knew Alex when you were a teenager?" Peter asked when Neal didn't respond.

"Yes" Neal answered. "Now where did you get this picture?" the worry was growing in his voice.

Peter noticed Neal's reaction. "The FBI Office in St. Louis sent that to me. There was a fire in a Pawn shop and the apartment above. That's where they found the picture"

"Was anyone hurt?" Neal asked as his heart beat faster, his face no longer hiding his expression. He knew the answer.

"Yes, they suspect it was arson. The man who owned the shop was killed, his name is…"

"George Pallas" Neal interrupted and bowed his head. "I have to go" he told them.

"Go where, St. Louis?" Diana asked. "Did you know him?"

"I have to be with her" He knew she'd go, while George and she weren't that close, he was family and the only family she had left. "Her name wasn't Alex back then, she went by… Nicole…Pallas"

Peter walked over to him. "I'll see what I can do" Which would be difficult, he barely got his job back and Neal was on a much tighter leash since running. He'd have to spin George Pallas as an old friend of Neal's. He looked up George Pallas, he had a couple of larceny charges when he was younger. Then it looked like he cleaned up his act when he took in his niece Nicole. However he was suspected of a couple of robberies around the area but they never found any proof, every time they checked his shop it was clean. However this was his only chance to find out more about Neal.

Neal leaned back against the head rest staring out the window as the plane flew over New York City thinking of the first time he met her.

* * *

He walked into his third period class, World History, he noticed her right away. She was beautiful; she had long brown hair that fell down her back, full lips and a dark tan. She was wore an A/C t-shirt that fit tight around her body and faded jeans.

She was new, because he pretty much knew all the girls in school. She barely paid attention to anyone as they filed into the classroom. She kept her head down and was writing in her notebook. She was someone that didn't like to draw attention to herself.

He saw Tom Harris and some of the other football players ask her questions, she'd smile answer them but kept her face straight ahead. They asked her, her name. Nikki, they asked where she was from, she said San Francisco. They asked her to come watch them practice, she told them maybe. They talked to her during most of the class but she never once looked at them while she answered.

He didn't talk to her at all that first day, but he couldn't get her out of his head. She seemed different than the other girls at the school. He wanted to get to know her but he was too shy that day.

* * *

Peter drove the rental past the burnt down pawn shop, the yellow crime scene tape stretched across the block. Whoever killed him made sure nothing was left but a burning husk. Neal hoped they had killed him before they burned down the building.

Peter turned to him and asked where Alex might be so he gave him directions. They pulled in front the brick and glass building that looked completely different then when he was younger.

"A Library?" Diana said from the back seat. She felt bad that Alex lost her uncle, but she came along because she didn't trust Alex and she didn't trust them with Alex.

Neal pushed the doors open and walked inside. He smiled he remembered this place well; they spent a lot of time here. He ran up the stairs not even bothering to see if they were following. He had to find her, he had to make sure she was okay.

He walked down the aisles and through the door to the study carols. He let out the breath he didn't know he was holding as he saw her back facing him. She was staring out the window with arms across her chest.

She turned around when she felt a presence behind her. "Neal?" she asked surprised to see him. When he asked her to run away with him he told her he would never step foot in St. Louis again. "What are you doing here?"

He walked over to her. "They found a picture of us in the fire, they sent it to Peter" He told her. "Alex I'm sorry"

She looked up at the ceiling trying to stop the tears that threatened to fall. She barely ever cried but this was her fault. "I told him to wait for me, not to contact them without me" she told Neal staring back out the window. Neal's brows furrowed as she continued. "I told them that they weren't like their father, that they were dangerous and didn't tolerate any kind of failure" Alex Hunter took a deep breath. "He couldn't deliver so they killed him"

"Who killed him?" Neal asked. Her Uncle never progressed past minor cons and tricks. He never had the ambition, so the characters he worked with were never ones that played the game fairly.

"The Mitchell brothers" she replied.

Cameron and Carter Mitchell were the sons of Robert Mitchell. They liked to think of themselves as thieves but they were thugs. Robert gave second chances as long as you normally delivered, his twin sons did not. If George failed then he knew what that meant.

"How long did they give you?" Neal asked without hesitation.

"Twenty four hours"

Tbc…


	2. Chapter 2

Summary: A tragedy makes Neal talk about the past he ran from and brings him closer to the one that he could never leave behind.

A/N: From what they showed us, Neal met Alex after he was pursuing Kate. But I always thought that Neal and Alex's relationship had to be more than a one night stand and couple of hook ups. Their relationship seemed much deeper than that. So in my mind Neal and Alex go a lot further back.

* * *

**Like Old Times**

* * *

****** 1993**

She walked through the mostly empty hallways; she stayed later to finish her English project with kids from her class. They had to finish it today because everyone was busy for the rest of the week. She would've missed him if she wasn't just looking into the empty classrooms as she passed them. She stopped in the doorway and watched him amazed at what he was doing.

"_T__he Storm on the Sea of Galilee_" she said walking into the room. "Rembrandt"

He jumped and turned around. "You scared me" he said catching his breath.

"I figured that's why I waited until you put the brush down" she told him as she walked over. "Looks like the real thing" she said looking at him.

"It doesn't" he replied shyly looking away from her.

"It does, I saw the real thing in Boston" she told him with a smile. He looked at her, his dark hair fell over his incredibly blue eyes. Now it was her turn to look away shyly. "Before it was stolen of course" she added.

"Right" he replied. He was fascinated by that robbery because after three years they still had no leads. The thieves had walked in dressed as Boston Police officers and walked out with ten painting and two artifacts worth over five hundred million dollars. "This is just a stupid painting I'm doing for a class" he told her.

"It's amazing. You've captured everything perfectly, the brush strokes, the lighting, the detail" she looked at him and he was smiling at her compliments. "You could probably sell this and get a lot of money" His eyes rose in confusion and she knew she went too far. "I'm joking of course" she said with a smile.

He smiled. "You really think it's that good"

"If I didn't know it was stolen and it didn't smell like fresh paint, it would've fooled me" Not really but it would fool many people she knew.

"Thank you" he said sincerely. "I'm Danny"

"Nicki" she said holding her hand out to him. He was cute or maybe she just didn't have a lot of contact with boys her age.

"Do you paint?" He asked.

She shook her head, "No" she answered strongly. She wished she could. It would be much more helpful.

"You just like art?"

"I like learning about it, every object has a story to tell."

Neal nodded and smiled at her. He was fascinated with and wanted to know her story now.

She looked down at her watch. "I'm sorry, I have to go. I'll see you around?" she was so late and he was probably screwing everything up. She left him books to read but she knew he would not even have touched them yet.

"Yeah" Neal answered, disappointed that she was leaving.

She smiled and took off running down the hallway and out the door. She ran down the street knowing she was going to need an excuse. She saw a man and woman arguing in front of a shoe store. He said he had money but she didn't need any more shoes. She narrowed her eyes looking at the suit he was wearing and smiled. She started running; her shoulder clipped his side and pushed him back slightly. She mumbled a half hearted apology and continued running while he screamed profanities at her about being an ungrateful teenager.

She ran until she got inside the small entrance to their apartment. She opened his wallet, three hundred bucks and some poker chips. Someone wanted to waste his cash at a casino rather than on his girl.

If their meeting was successful then she had a good day today, she finished her homework, met a cute guy and made some money. She smiled, put the wallet in her bag and opened the door to shop and walked to the back.

* * *

**2012**

Alex rubbed her hands through her hair and sighed. She stared out the window at the street below, there were a few people walking to their cars and a woman walking her dog. Other than that the street below them was clear. Sure other streets were busier than this one but it was nothing like New York where every street was busy at all hours.

She should've been here but she was off chasing another dream of her grandfather's. He made her promise on his death bed that she would find the treasures he could not. And now because she didn't get back here in time her Uncle was dead. They didn't always get along but she would've ended up in foster care if he didn't take her in.

"What do they want?" Neal asked interrupting her thoughts. George was a big part of his life too; he wasn't going to let those two get away with killing him and they were definitely not going to hurt Alex.

"I have twenty four hours to steal a Barocci, from the St. Louis Art Museum"

Neal's brows furrowed. "They want a Barocci, I didn't think they knew who that was"

"I don't think they do. I think they have someone that wants one" Alex replied.

"Which piece?"

"_Aeneas flees burning Troy_. It's a special exhibit that they have right now." She told him. "If I don't get it they'll kill me"

Neal looked into her eyes. He always told her that he would never let anything happen to her and he meant it. She was the only person that knew his story, knew who he was before. "We done museums before, we can do this" he knew she could she was part of her first museum heist in Boston when she was eleven.

"Museum jobs take more planning then we can do twenty four hours" Alex said to him. Security was much tighter than it used to be, they would need floor plans, pass codes, id badges, uniforms and a tube to place the painting in. But her mind wasn't really focused on that, what she really wanted to do was find the Mitchell brothers and kill them.

Neal knew she was right. Breaking into a museum was not as easy as breaking into someone's home. So he came up with another idea. "Instead of working out a way to steal it, let's tell the museum what were going to do"

"You want us to tell the museum we are going to steal from them?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Yes" Neal answered her. "With help" Then he turned his head towards the door.

Alex looked in the same direction and saw them. "The Feds, you brought the Fed's with you!" she said the anger rising in her voice.

"I had too; I couldn't come here without them and I needed to make sure you were okay."

"They don't have jurisdiction here" Alex told him.

"That's why they can talk to the FBI here and work together. We can't let Cameron and Carter get away with this Alex. Justice needs to be served…the right way." Neal nodded his head at Peter and Diana, and then he looked back at her. He knew how she felt; he knew what she wanted to do. And he couldn't let her do it. They were thieves and liars but they were not killers.

"Alex" Peter said as he walked into the room.

"Agent Burke, Agent Barrigan" Alex said nodding at them.

"I'm sorry for your loss" Peter told her.

"I'm sorry too" Diana said sincerely.

"Thank you" she replied. She liked Agent Burke, he was a decent guy for a Fed but he probably wasn't too fond of her and Agent Barrigan probably hated her for breaking into her house.

Peter Burke looked at both of them and sighed. He knew this wasn't going to be work free trip. "What is it?" He asked.

"A Barocci" Neal answered.

"Who?" Peter asked. He was familiar with most of the painters but he didn't memorize them all.

Federico Barocci, was a 16th century Mannerist painter during the Renaissance. He was known for his court portraits and grand religious works." Alex told him.

Peter looked at her than at Neal. "I thought you were into antiques, do you people just learn everything about everybody?"

"Its part of the job" Neal replied with small smile.

"Where is it?" Peter asked.

"The St. Louis Art Museum" Neal replied.

Peter nodded his head. "Of course it is"

"They'll kill her if we don't get it to them" Neal told both Agents. He knew they were not fond of Alex, especially Diana but they wouldn't want her dead.

"They showed up at my hotel and that's where they expect the drop. I have twenty four hours or I'll meet the same fate as my Uncle"

"Your Uncle was going to steal it for them?" Diana asked. She came here to watch them. Peter wouldn't admit it but he did have a soft spot for Alex.

"Yes" Alex replied, noticing the distain in Diana's voice.

"Is he the one that taught you to steal?"

"No" Alex told her. "My parents did"

"Your parents" Diana repeated her eyes slightly widening. "Your entire family, are criminals?"

"Yes and were. They're all dead now"

"And you don't think that your career choice has anything to do with it?"

Alex sighed. "My parents died in a car accident when I was eight and my grandfather died of liver failure because he liked to drink. Until George none of them died because of our career choice" she said keeping her eyes locked on the female agents.

Neal walked between the two women. "Okay, so we have to steal _Aeneas flees burning Troy" _he and Peter both felt the temperature drop ten degrees. Diana did not trust Alex and Alex did not trust Diana. And that was his fault, he had Alex break into Diana's apartment and steal the music box. But they needed to work together to save Alex's life and catch killers.

"Aeneas, the Trojan hero from the Iliad?" Peter asked. Alex looked at him impressed. "I know some things" she smiled at him.

Neal told them his plan and Peter and Diana went to talk to the St. Louis FBI to see if they were willing to help. The Mitchell brothers were most likely wanted by them anyway. So no one would pass up a chance to catch them and put them away for good.

Tbc…

* * *

Since we found out Neal's witsec name, I changed it to Danny in my story.


End file.
